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THE Swindon Robins Speedway team will have a £5m new home in 2016 after plans for a new stadium were announced yesterday.

Work could start as early as May on the new venue, which will not only have new facilities for the riders but is being designed so it is ideal for television companies to broadcast events. It will be built next to the existing Abbey Stadium, built in 1949, which will then be demolished.

Greyhound racing will also take place at the new venue.

Clarke Osbourne, of Gaming International which owns the land, says while it has taken time to get to this point the end result will be worth the wait.

He said: “The recession was very much like this eclipse for us. For a period it looked very dark but it has now brightened up.

“We are delighted to have got to this stage. We had planning permission a number of years ago but it was all held up by the recession.

“There was certainly a time when things really looked as though they weren’t going to happen but the support we’ve had from the local community and MP have been great.

“If everything goes to plan we would hope to start work in 10 weeks so everything will be ready for next season.

“We have designed it so it will be for TV.

“A lot of people say this but it really will be state-of-the-art. There will be camera positions built in and the latest LED floodlights.

“It will be somewhere which is not only convenient but also cheap for television companies.”

Clarke says there will be some disruption during the building period but every effort will be made to keep it to a minimum.

When built, the new stadium will hold around 2,500 people, similar to the current level but it will have the facilities to hold functions every day of the week, thereby increasing the revenue generated.

The stadium will also incorporate space for local charities and youth groups to use and the market will be retained.

North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson campaigned to save the stadium back in 2008 when he was a borough councillor.

He said: “This is an immensely proud moment for me.

“I led the campaign in 2008 to save the stadium so it is fantastic for the local community and the speedway fans.

“I am delighted that after many years these plans have now come forward. This is really good news.

“The pressure is now on for Alun and his team to have a really strong final season.”

Let’s give old stadium a send-off in style

THE announcement of the new stadium has created mixed feelings for Swindon Robins and Great Britain manager Alun Rossiter, who has a long history with the Abbey.

He is delighted the sport is about to get a huge shot in the arm with new facilities but will miss the venue he has been coming to since he was a small child.

“I am over the moon at the moment,” he said. “I started as a mascot here in 1969 and then rode for the team, captained the team and am now the manager, so this is a really big day.

“This stadium was built in 1949 so there is a touch of sadness but we have to move forward. The track is fine but if you look at the rest of it, things are very run down. Unfortunately, you do have to move with the times and on to bigger and better things.

The stadium will stand in the middle of a new housing development and many of the streets will be named after former riders.

Alun says it shows how important the stadium is to the town and believes it will bring in many benefits.

He said “These are really exciting times for Speedway and the whole of Swindon. Having a brand new facility is something which will lift everyone.

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“We have had some really good support from the local MP and I don’t think this would have happened without him.

“What we have to do now is make sure we send the Abbey off with style.”

Taken from the Swindon Advertiser 21/3/2015.

 

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THE Swindon Robins Speedway team will have a £5m new home in 2016 after plans for a new stadium were announced yesterday.

Work could start as early as May on the new venue, which will not only have new facilities for the riders but is being designed so it is ideal for television companies to broadcast events. It will be built next to the existing Abbey Stadium, built in 1949, which will then be demolished.

Greyhound racing will also take place at the new venue.

Clarke Osbourne, of Gaming International which owns the land, says while it has taken time to get to this point the end result will be worth the wait.

He said: “The recession was very much like this eclipse for us. For a period it looked very dark but it has now brightened up.

“We are delighted to have got to this stage. We had planning permission a number of years ago but it was all held up by the recession.

“There was certainly a time when things really looked as though they weren’t going to happen but the support we’ve had from the local community and MP have been great.

“If everything goes to plan we would hope to start work in 10 weeks so everything will be ready for next season.

“We have designed it so it will be for TV.

“A lot of people say this but it really will be state-of-the-art. There will be camera positions built in and the latest LED floodlights.

“It will be somewhere which is not only convenient but also cheap for television companies.”

Clarke says there will be some disruption during the building period but every effort will be made to keep it to a minimum.

When built, the new stadium will hold around 2,500 people, similar to the current level but it will have the facilities to hold functions every day of the week, thereby increasing the revenue generated.

The stadium will also incorporate space for local charities and youth groups to use and the market will be retained.

North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson campaigned to save the stadium back in 2008 when he was a borough councillor.

He said: “This is an immensely proud moment for me.

“I led the campaign in 2008 to save the stadium so it is fantastic for the local community and the speedway fans.

“I am delighted that after many years these plans have now come forward. This is really good news.

“The pressure is now on for Alun and his team to have a really strong final season.”

Let’s give old stadium a send-off in style

THE announcement of the new stadium has created mixed feelings for Swindon Robins and Great Britain manager Alun Rossiter, who has a long history with the Abbey.

He is delighted the sport is about to get a huge shot in the arm with new facilities but will miss the venue he has been coming to since he was a small child.

“I am over the moon at the moment,” he said. “I started as a mascot here in 1969 and then rode for the team, captained the team and am now the manager, so this is a really big day.

“This stadium was built in 1949 so there is a touch of sadness but we have to move forward. The track is fine but if you look at the rest of it, things are very run down. Unfortunately, you do have to move with the times and on to bigger and better things.

The stadium will stand in the middle of a new housing development and many of the streets will be named after former riders.

Alun says it shows how important the stadium is to the town and believes it will bring in many benefits.

He said “These are really exciting times for Speedway and the whole of Swindon. Having a brand new facility is something which will lift everyone.

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“We have had some really good support from the local MP and I don’t think this would have happened without him.

“What we have to do now is make sure we send the Abbey off with style.”

Taken from the Swindon Advertiser 21/3/2015.

 

 

 

Oh. :sad:

 

I was very upbeat until your last line.

Edited by Vincent Blackshadow

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"Work could start as early as May on the new venue."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“If everything goes to plan we would hope to start work in 10 weeks so everything will be ready for next season.
Seem to be two contradicting statements there unless I'm reading it wrongly. :blink:

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"Work could start as early as May on the new venue."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“If everything goes to plan we would hope to start work in 10 weeks so everything will be ready for next season.
Seem to be two contradicting statements there unless I'm reading it wrongly. :blink:

 

 

It was a press release from last March. It was referring to the hope that work would start in May 2015 and be ready for next season.

 

God knows why someone has gone into a time warp and reposted the full thing today!

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"Work could start as early as May on the new venue."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“If everything goes to plan we would hope to start work in 10 weeks so everything will be ready for next season.
Seem to be two contradicting statements there unless I'm reading it wrongly. :blink:

 

Do not forget that this info was put out in March 2015, to start May 2015, which should have been June 2015, and the stadium be ready in March 2016. Some locals knew that detailed planning permission had not been granted so it was unlikely that the above dates would be met.

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Do not forget that this info was put out in March 2015, to start May 2015, which should have been June 2015, and the stadium be ready in March 2016. Some locals knew that detailed planning permission had not been granted so it was unlikely that the above dates would be met.

 

 

dates met!!!?....put it this way, I think a few dates are behind schedule in Reading and Milton Keynes as well!

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It was a press release from last March. It was referring to the hope that work would start in May 2015 and be ready for next season.

 

God knows why someone has gone into a time warp and reposted the full thing today!

...because hopefully it may clear up a few points and misunderstandings and/or misinformation?

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It was a press release from last March. It was referring to the hope that work would start in May 2015 and be ready for next season.

 

God knows why someone has gone into a time warp and reposted the full thing today!

Ah yes thank you. I see the date at the bottom now. :oops: I just presumed as it was posted today it was something new.

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Yes, but you have doubts about everything and contribute nothing.

 

Problem is Tsumani I suspect there are very few who actually believed when the 'End of an Era' meeting was held was really going to be that. Given that the Swindon promotion knew that no planning permission had been sought then to kid people that the stadium would be ready for March is surely treating people as fools. As the article from March demonstrates its not exactly moving at a pace that suggests its achievable

 

I admire their optimism if they ever thought for one minute it would really happen

Edited by Chris Brown
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Problem is Tsumani I suspect there are very few who actually believed when the 'End of an Era' meeting was held was really going to be that. Given that the Swindon promotion knew that no planning permission had been sought then to kid people that the stadium would be ready for March is surely treating people as fools. As the article from March demonstrates its not exactly moving at a pace that suggests its achievable

 

I admire their optimism if they ever thought for one minute it would really happen

Hi Chris!

 

I agree entirely! I've been out of the 'speedway loop' for a decade but keep tentative tabs. I always thought this particular thread optimistic knowing how planning works. However there are some who should know better who allowed the story to run raising people's hopes. I only initiated this thread based on a conversation that I had a number of weeks ago with a group from Swindon who appeared to have some evidence that things were moving...since proved to be not the case!

 

Hope that life in Oxford is fine and that Cowley may soon see some movement but I'm sure that there is still a long way to go.

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Problem is Tsumani I suspect there are very few who actually believed when the 'End of an Era' meeting was held was really going to be that. Given that the Swindon promotion knew that no planning permission had been sought then to kid people that the stadium would be ready for March is surely treating people as fools. As the article from March demonstrates its not exactly moving at a pace that suggests its achievable

 

I admire their optimism if they ever thought for one minute it would really happen

Yes, I read the pessimism at the time, and quite rightly with the stadium owners track record as you already know. But you can only go with what is said in terms of promises, and proceed hoping the promises are going to be honoured. To have not gone ahead with the "End of' meeting would have very disappointing to all the home fans demanding one. Let's hope that the new plans can accommodate a speedway track pretty soon, as the team is now starting to sign riders for 2016, and I don't think Doyle would risk his career at this point in time if it was a sham. Let's hope so.

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Yes, I read the pessimism at the time, and quite rightly with the stadium owners track record as you already know. But you can only go with what is said in terms of promises, and proceed hoping the promises are going to be honoured. To have not gone ahead with the "End of' meeting would have very disappointing to all the home fans demanding one. Let's hope that the new plans can accommodate a speedway track pretty soon, as the team is now starting to sign riders for 2016, and I don't think Doyle would risk his career at this point in time if it was a sham. Let's hope so.

What a load of garbage that is ! It would just take a statement from Swindon along the lines of " We are not going to put on the end of era meeting meeting because we are unsure whether this is the end for the present stadium" ,problem solved. Judging by the short amount of time after the meeting took place and the announcement telling the fans that the new stadium was going to be delayed,I would be amazed that the promoters were not aware.

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What a load of garbage that is ! It would just take a statement from Swindon along the lines of " We are not going to put on the end of era meeting meeting because we are unsure whether this is the end for the present stadium" ,problem solved. Judging by the short amount of time after the meeting took place and the announcement telling the fans that the new stadium was going to be delayed,I would be amazed that the promoters were not aware.

You would one of the first to disbelieve any statement similar to that one. A moaner if they do, a moaner if they don't.

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You would one of the first to disbelieve any statement similar to that one. A moaner if they do, a moaner if they don't.

I prefer to call it pointing out the very serious shortcomings in customer care & consideration by speedway promoters, but unfortunately they ,like yourself are still living in the 1950's.and don't see what they are doing wrong.

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